If this is your first visit, be sure to
check out the FAQ by clicking the
link above. You may have to register
before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages,
select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

Comment

Like ok, I like the original Prey 2006 too. It wasn't the greatest-game-ever but it definitely stood out from the other shooters being released at the time. For the Native American theming and protagonist, the spirit persona mechanics, and the weird gravity puzzles.

With that said...there was no Prey franchise. You can't build a franchise off of only 1 game. There was no great Prey legacy to build off of. And the generation of gamers of 2006 are going to be completely different from the ones of 2017. The name of "Prey" has no long-lasting value to keep using.

Especially since by all accounts, this Prey has little to nothing in common with Prey 2006. No Native American elements to it, no weird gravity puzzles (no, the zero gravity elements don't count, it's just an environmental element to the levels), no spirit mode, and none of the weird "living weapons".

So why still call this game Prey?

(although admittedly, it sounded like the original Prey 2 was going to have very little to do with Prey 2006, since aside being set in the same universe and timeframe, it didn't have a whole lot to do with the story of Tommy Tawodi)

The ONLY reasons I can think of on why the game is still called Prey is because of legal reasons. That when the licenses and rights of the game transferred over to Arkane Studios and Bethesda, they were still contractually obligated to use the Prey name. Or that because a bunch of money had already been invested into the old Prey 2, and that they had to pay it off by still keeping the name.

------------------------

Otherwise, game's still pretty good.

Being an Arkane Studio game, it has elements very familiar from their work on the Dishonored games. By giving the player a wide variety of weapons, neuromod powers, and environmental hazards it enables players to approach the game however they want. Which certainly makes for a fun time. Although here I feel like there isn't as many options available as Dishonored, for stealth (not a whole lot of abilities and equipment to promote stealth play) or combat play (very limited selection of more direct damaging weapons, and not even a conventional long-ranged weapon).

Setting and atmosphere of the place is very good: the art direction of the station itself being unique. I'm not exactly up to date on my architectural styles (I want to say it's kind of art deco-y, but I don't know for sure), but at the very least, it's not your typical sterile white sci-fi location. And in general making the station feel like a place that was once lived in by a full staff of people with the various emails, audio logs, and environmental art details. It's all very good.

Amusingly one of the things said in marketing this game was how this game is a "spiritual successor to Bioshock". And that game in of itself was supposed to be a spiritual successor to System Shock 2...and the System Shock franchise was also a survival horror game that was set on a space station that had been invaded on an alien force...which means Prey 2017 went all the way back around to being System Shock...but not really.

And then the ending...HO BOY THE ENDING.

While there are multiple endings depending on different choices you make throughout the game, the ultimate relevant ending is the same.

That you discover everything you did is pretty much for naught...because the Typhon already took over Earth. Regardless of whether you blew up the station or killed all the Typhon with the Nullwave device or even if you managed to escape in time. Earth still gets completely fucked over by the Typhon. And discovering that everything you did, especially since discovering that it was JUST a virtual simulation, was all pointless. Which certainly does take the piss out of the whole game.

Either way...I still had fun playing the game. I can confidently say that I probably won't replay this game ever again (especially since it looks like this is one of those rare AAA games to not receive any post-launch DLC). Do recommend it to people...but will caution them with a warning on the ending being a real shit show.

Comment

There was an article about that: the game is called Prey because they had the rights to the name and figured a recognizable one would help a new sci-fi shooter IP do better. I don't think it makes sense, but hat was their reasoning.

Comment

Yeah but some, like Charlaquin, I think, played the beta and potentially others did.

The Beta was a pretty small sample of the game. One story mission, one strike, and two PvP modes, with 2 subclasses available per class. I enjoyed it. Movement felt a little slower than in the original, which took some getting used to, but wasn't too bad. Abilities charge much more slowly, which is a little annoying, but it looks like there are a lot of abilities on subclasses and gear to increase charge times.

I really enjoyed the changes to the weapon system, though a lot of folks don't. Now instead of a Primary slot that can hold an auto rifle, pulse rifle, scout rifle, or hand cannon, a Special slot that can hold a sniper, shotgun, fusion rifle, or sidearm, and a Heavy slot that can hold a rocket launcher, machine gun, or sword, you have a Kinetic slot that can hold a weapon of the Primary types, a sidearm, or the new type, submachine gun, an energy slot that can hold a weapon of the same set of types, and a power slot that can hold a weapon of any of the other types. Kinetic weapons now do more critical damage, while energy weapons do bonus damage to shields of all types instead of just matching types, but cause shields of matching types to explode when they break. Personally I love the new system because I get more use out of my 3 weapons, instead of feeling like my Heavy weapon is overkill except against bosses.

They've also gone a long way to give us more stuff to do besides replaying strikes. Adventures are fully-voiced side-quests you can do on patrols. Lost Sectors are like little dungeons hidden in the patrol maps, complete with bosses at the end that drop endgame-tier loot. And every week one patrol space will be designed as the week's Flashpoint. Public events in the Flashpoint give better rewards. You can also buy treasure maps that lead to hidden endgame-tier loot chests in the Flashpoint. Oh, and Public Events have Heroic versions now that you can trigger to increase the difficulty of the event and bump up its rewards to endgame-tier. From what I've read, the story is much more cohesive, so that's nice.

PvP has all been changed to 4v4, which makes for a tighter, more competitive PvP. I'm not a huge PvP player, so I can't say too much on that. From my experience in the beta, there's a lot less individual clutching and a lot more team vs. team firefights. The new weapon loadout system also means a lot less sniping and shotgunning - you very rarely get killed in one hit, so you always know exactly what got you killed and have a good idea what you should have done differently.

The changes to the subclasses feel good, pretty similar to the original for the most part. There's new class abilities, Warlocks can drop little zones that heal themselves and allies in them overtime or buff weapon damage. Titans can drop either a head-height cover wall or a chest-height one that automatically reloads your weapon when you duck behind it. Hunters can dodge and either automatically reload their weapon or refill their melee when they dodge. As a Hunter main, I'm a bit miffed our new class ability is the only one that doesn't directly support the team, but I'll get over it eventually.

Onyx Path Forum Moderator

My mod voice is red. I use it so you know when I'm speaking in an official capacity, not as an indication of tone.

Going by Willow now, or Wil for short. She/Her/Hers.

1 like

Comment

Comment

Oh, also Titans are straight-up just the Marvel class now. Sunbreakers throw hammers like a certain Norse god. Strikers hulk smash. And the new void subclass, Sentinels get a Captain America shield they can bash dudes with and throw, bouncing it off one dude into another, and another, etc.

Onyx Path Forum Moderator

My mod voice is red. I use it so you know when I'm speaking in an official capacity, not as an indication of tone.